Canadian pop singer The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) has announced that he wants to change his stage name, writes W Magazine.

The singer also said in an interview with the publication that the change of pseudonym does not mean his departure from show business and the music industry.

“Now I am going through a catharsis. There comes a point when I'm ready to close the chapter of The Weeknd. I will still make music: maybe like Abel, maybe like The Weeknd”, - the artist explained.

The Weeknd continues to work on new compositions, from the recent released by him - the track Double Fantasy with rapper Future. The Weeknd also holds the Guinness World Records for being the first musician to reach 100 million listeners in a month on the streaming platform Spotify, with a record of 111,4 million.